Professor Sonja Kosunen leads an Academy Project in early childhood education and care, and Arjen Gerbraad and Maria Skalska-Tuomi were awarded Academy Research Fellow funding.
The Research Council of Finland has granted Academy Project funding to the WISEG project led by Professor of Education Sonja Kosunen at the University of Eastern Finland. The University of Eastern Finland’s share of the funding amounts to 499,980 euros. Tampere University is a partner in the project.
Running from 2026 to 2029, the WISEG project investigates the segregation of workforce instability in early childhood education and care (ESEC) in Finland. The project explores the interconnections of educator shortage, turnover and volatility – that is, workforce instability – which, as a combination, may contribute to inequalities between children and families attending ECEC in different areas.
The Research Council of Finland also granted Academy Research Fellow funding to two University of Eastern Finland researchers.
Senior Researcher Arjen Gebraad at the Department of Technical Physics was awarded Academy Research Fellow funding for a project aiming to improve the outcome of cartilage repair surgery by creating replacement cartilage using an innovative approach involving cells embedded in hydrogels and mechanical stimulus in a novel bioreactor. The funding amounts to 576,460 euros.
Postdoctoral Researcher Maria Skalska-Tuomi at the Department of Geographical and Historical Studies was awarded Academy Research Fellow funding for the EmpERA project, which focuses on tundra ecosystem responses to both warming and cooling climate by 2100. The funding amounts to 693,498 euros.
